TRADE, TECHNICAL, PROFESSIONAL AND BUSINESS

Magazines in the trade, technical, professional and business class are published for active business people. The readers of these publications are looking for ways to improve their businesses and increase profits. While they might appreciate a little humor in the articles and want the material to be well-written, they are not reading them for pleasure.

These business journals are designed to appeal to one of the following three specific groups:

Retailers

Manufacturers

Professionals and industry experts

Retailers, along with business people who perform various services, are interested in such subjects as successful sales campaigns and unique merchandise displays. Manufacturers expect articles dealing with ways to solve industry problems, such as personnel absenteeism and equipment failure. Professionals and industry experts want stories about new techniques and technical developments in their respective fields.

All of these business people are interested in making money and managing their businesses more efficiently. Therefore, the primary purpose of each of the business journals is the goal of helping its readers do their jobs better. Besides stories about business trends and solutions to problems, these publications often offer advice on ways a particular business can be operated more profitably.

Trade Journals

While the term trade journal is often applied to all publications in the business journal class, there are subtle differences.

A trade refers to skilled work usually requiring extensive training, but not necessarily formal education, to master it. Carpentry is one example of a trade; printing is another. Therefore, a trade journal is a publication addressing the skilled laborers in a particular field, or the work they perform. Motor Magazine and Ceramic Monthly are examples of trade journals.

Technical Journals

Technical journals usually discuss sophisticated material, equipment or instruments and their use. Examples of technical journals are Datamation, Broadcasting and Photomethods.

Profesional Journals

Professional journals are publications intended for professional people. This group primarily includes persons with a vocation or occupation requiring advanced education and training and involving intellectual skills. This group specifically comprises those working in such fields as law, medicine, theology, education, engineering, journalism, and so forth. However, the term professional has, in general use, been expanded. It now includes the executives, managers, department heads, some staff members and even the sales force of most business enterprises.

Business Journals

There are business journals for those persons in, seemingly, every occupation imaginable. There is Cashflow for accountants, Advertising Age for ad agency personnel, Chilton's Food Engineering for those in the food and beverage processing industry and American Psychologist for psychologists.

There is Scholastic Coach for high school and college sports personnel, Instructor Magazine for elementary school teachers, American Bee Journal for amateur and professional beekeepers and Grocery Distribution for operators of food warehouses and distribution centers. Police is published for law enforcement personnel and Editor and Publisher for newspaper personnel. There is the ABA Journal for lawyers, Private Practice for medical doctors in private practice and C&S (Casket and Sunnyside) for funeral directors. Across the Board caters to business people.